Music Recommendation #2

11/14/10-11/20/10

Alright, time for another week of bringing you some new music and telling you what's going on in the world.  Sorry nothing was brought up last week, but I didn't get any new stuff, so... there ya go.  We're going to start off with what I got from the radio station.

The first album I got was a sampler of Orange Juice's "Coals to Newcastle."  The album is comprised of songs picked out across the epic seven disc (6 CDs & 1 DVD) set, which contains the band's complete discography.  The band played at the start of the '80s in Europe and presaged the coming of The Smiths and kickstarted a renaissance in Scottish pop music.  The compilation is being released under Domino Recording Company (US Division) and you can find the monster CD pack on Amazon.  Overall, Orange Juice is a fun band to listen to.  They're very up beat, very poppy, and VERY '80s.  The sampler I got only has 18 tracks, but the overall bundle consists of a DVD from a live performance and 124 individual tracks among the six CDs.  Orange Juice has a really good sound and is pretty versatile when it  comes to switching it up a bit.  "Rip it Up" is fast and up tempo, where as "Scaremonger" is slower and more swanky.  One thing every track has in it is the typical heavily synthesized '80s keyboard.  I'm not a huge fan of this sort of music, but I did enjoy the album a fair amount.  If you're interested in the epic album, take a listen here; if not, I'm sure you can find the sampler somewhere, which would be a lot easier on the pocket book.

The second album I got was Soft Circle's "Shore Obsessed."  This album has got to be one of the best album's I've gotten from the radio station so far; definitely in the Top 3, at least.  Soft Circle is a New York based band started up by Hisham Bharoocha and later joined by Ben Vida.  Bharoocha is known for using looped guitar riffs and repeated vocal sounds to create a trance like type of music.  "Shore Obsessed" is the third album released from Soft Circle, the second album released this year (2010), and the first album released under the duo.  The opening track to the album, "First Time," starts out with a repeated vocal track accompanied by a running base line which lead into some gentle guitar licks.  The overall feeling is similar to what you would find with Foals, but is a bit more hypnotic.  The song is light and energetic and has an overall calming feel to it.  However, what was more impressive for me from the album was how quickly the band can shift gears.  "Nerve of People" has a much darker, industrial feel to it.  The beat is heavy and metallic, the chant in the background is almost demonic, and the vocals are lamentations of society.  The feeling is much different from that of the opening track and almost reminds me of a NIN hybrid.  "Reaper," possibly my favorite track on the album, mixes the sounds of "First Time" and "Nerve of People" into an intense, fast moving, rhythmic song.  The sound is dynamic and hard hitting with the repetition on bass and keyboard.  I would definitely check out Soft Circle if you're looking for something new to listen to, they know how to rock.  Take a listen to them here.

Now, onto some stuff you can look forward to in the music world.  Kanye West is releasing his newest album "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" and is already receiving rave reviews, averaging a Metacritic score of 100 over seven reviewers.  In other hip-hop news, Nelly recently released his album "5.0" which is receiving decent reviews and already has a single, "Just A Dream," sitting at #5 on Billboard's Top 100 Singles.  Unfortunately, Billboard isn't much to go off of seeing as how Susan Boyle's new album, "The Gift," is currently sitting at the #1 spot on Billboard's Top 200 Albums.  Two things we can ALL look forward to in the upcoming week are the release of Ke$ha's (pronounced: Kay-ee-dollar-sign-haha) new EP "Cannibal" and My Chemical Romance's new album "Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys" (Please don't think I'm serious).  Although, I will say, My Chemical Romance's new album is receiving positive reviews so far.  Alright, now that we have that out of the way, I will do my absolute best to keep you updated with new music I'm getting from the radio station and new music coming your way.  Thanks for reading, see you soon with a review for Kanye West's "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy."